Poppies by Lori Lipsky
Poppies, parades
Cemetery ceremonies
Fireworks, flags, and
Picnics in the park
Reminders to remember
Soldiers who have served,
Sacrificed all so
We might celebrate liberty
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And here is a classic Memorial Day poem:

In Flanders Fields by John McCrae, 1915
In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses, row on row,
That mark our place, and in the sky,
The larks, still bravely singing, fly,
Scarce heard amid the guns below.
We are the dead; short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.
Take up our quarrel with the foe!
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high!
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.
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photo credit: iStockphoto/Michiel de Boer